Holistic professional learning:e-portfolios for academic development in higher education

Belinda Allen Learning and Teaching UnitUNSW

e-portfolios for academic development

Fragmented professional development experience

Supporting reflective practice and career development

Lack of understanding of portfolio learning

issues

background

e-portfolios for academic development

redesign of academic development programs for a blended learning format

blended learning experience as a model for teaching practice

eportfolios to support reflective practice and model portfolio-based learning

theory

e-portfolios for academic development

Holistic academic development (Brew & Boud, 2006) • Personal, professional and institutional dimensions• Diverse roles, needs and work patterns among staff.

Reflective practice (Brookfield, 1995)• Promote critical practice and meta-learning• Four lenses: their own experience as learners of reflective practice, learners’

eyes, colleagues’ perceptions, theoretical, philosophical, and research literature.

Communities of practice (Wenger, 1998)• Social dimensions of learning• Focus on ‘practice’ and ‘participation’

Integrative learning (Huber & Hutchings, 2004)• Educating the whole person• Lifelong / lifewide learning• Integrate dimensions of learning – formal, informal, workplace, community …

e-portfolios for academic development

• Developing capacity for reflective practice and lifelong learning in teaching practice.

• Enabling academics to select and aggregate evidence of their teaching development for career progression.

• Developing understanding of portfolio learning to support integrated learning and development of graduate capabilities for students.

benefits

practice

eportfolio in FULT

Participants in the blended Foundations of University Learning and Teaching (FULT) program are guided to set up a ‘Blogger’ blog, or are able to use another platform of their choice.

Over the month-long program they are encouraged to make several posts to their blog, and to share with other participants in their ‘learning group’. They are asked to reflect on their experience and learning as they participate in the program topics.

Finally they select and submit two exemplary posts, and reflect on the experience of using an eportfolio.

This eportfolio activity is being formatively evaluated with the intention of extending eportfolio activities into the Graduate Certificate of University Learning and Teaching (GCULT).

Foundations of University Learning and Teaching (FULT)You will be able to:

• Review your teaching and/or learning practice drawing on various sources of evidence

• Align learning outcomes, teaching and learning activities, and assessment strategies in your context

• Demonstrate awareness of UNSW support structures and policies relevant to your learning and teaching context

e-portfolios for academic development

dimensions• context

(personal, professional, institutional)

• role/stage (early career/mid-career ... professional/academic ... teaching/research focus)

• portfolio purpose (reflection, evidence, assessment, showcase)

Dimensions of eportfolio practice for academics

e-portfolios for academic development

references

Allen, B. & Coleman, K. (2011). The creative graduate: Cultivating and assessing creativity with eportfolios. In G. Williams, P. Statham, N. Brown & B. Cleland (Eds.), Changing Demands, Changing Directions. Proceedings ascilite Hobart 2011. (pp.59-69). http://www.ascilite.org.au/conferences/hobart11/procs/Allen-full.pdf

Brew, A. and Boud, D. (1996) Preparing for new academic roles: An holistic approach to development, International Journal for Academic Development, 1:2, 17-25.

Brookfield, S. (1995). Becoming a critically reflective teacher. (pp. 296). Jossey-Bass

Brown, J.O. (2002) Know Thyself: The Impact of Portfolio Development on Adult Learning. Adult Education Quarterly 2002 52: 228.

Huber, M.T. and Hutchings, P. (2004). Integrative Learning: Mapping the Terrain (online). Stanford CA: Association of American Colleges and Universities and the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching. Available from: http://www.carnegiefoundation.org/dynamic/publications/mapping-terrain.pdf

Klenowski, V., Askew, S. and Carnell, E. (2006) Portfolios for learning, assessment and professional development in higher education. Assessment & Evaluation in Higher Education. Vol. 31, No. 3, June 2006, pp. 267–286.

Wenger, E. (1998). Communities of practice: Learning, meaning, and identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.